Microsoft is deprecating Windows Mixed Reality, a feature that allows users to use dedicated headsets to navigate a special environment designed to provide a more immersive experience. It's yet another major aspect of Windows 10 that Microsoft finds itself giving up on.

The end of Windows Mixed Reality was quietly announced via Microsoft's list of deprecated Windows features, and it essentially means that this feature is no longer getting updates or receiving any meaningful support. It also means the Mixed Reality Portal app will be removed from Windows in a future release, and the Windows Mixed Reality app for SteamVR will similarly be discontinued.

It's another big blow to Microsoft's vision for Windows 10, which was to be an operating system that could run on and adapt to almost any device. Whether it was a PC, smartphone, or headset, it would run the same version of Windows underneath. Of course, Windows 10 Mobile started dying down soon after its release, and now Windows Mixed Reality is heading in a similar direction. Those who had hoped Microsoft would eventually fulfill its original vision will certainly be disappointed in this development, though it shouldn't be all too surprising considering Microsoft hasn't talked about Mixed Reality in a very long time.

Early last year, reports started swirling about Microsoft's AR efforts and how the company had no clear direction for HoloLens and mixed reality. A few months later, Alex Kipman, who had led the charge on HoloLens development, stepped down from the company. However, it's worth noting that HoloLens and Windows Mixed Reality aren't exactly the same thing, and in fact, HoloLens 2 headsets have been receiving updates as late as this month. Windows 11 was rolled out to HoloLens headsets earlier this year, and back in October, another big update hit the platform, with improvements to eye and hand tracking, support for NFC readers, and more. What's being deprecated appears to be just the Mixed Reality experience within PC versions of Windows, not the HoloLens software. We've reached out to Microsoft for comment on the state of HoloLens and will include any updates here if and when we hear back.

Regardless of where HoloLens software support stands, it's apparent that Microsoft has wound down development of mixed reality, including on the hardware front. The HoloLens 2 announcement will turn five years old in a couple of months, and there's no successor in sight. Interestingly, Apple seems to be picking up where Microsoft left off with the upcoming Apple Vision Pro, which is rumored to launch as early as February.